Diesel Black Death and Injector Seals
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Newbie
Joined: Nov 2021
Posts: 9
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W211 E320 CDI
Diesel Black Death and Injector Seals
I found my first diesel headache on Monday:
Black death on #6.
The car is a 2005 E320 CDI in the United States. OM648 engine. ~215k miles on the car. I have NOT had an injector flow test or injector balance test done yet. I bought the car at 168k, and have no maintenance history before that.
I do almost all my own work, but I took this to a shop because I can and I didn't want to mess with it this week.
The shop is trying to sell me on an injector refurbishment at ~$120/each. That doesn't seem terrible. I've actually been wondering if I have a leaking injector, as the best mileage I've been able to get is 30-32 mpg at 80 mph. The dash display tells me numbers above 40 mpg on trips like that... I find it difficult to believe that the dash display could be *THAT* wrong and the car still functioning correctly.
Once the immediate problem of removing the injector and cleaning the carbon deposit has been overcome, is there a reason not to reinstall with new seals? Will refurbishing the injectors get my mileage back?
What more do I need to know about the shop that does the refurbishing?
Black death on #6.
The car is a 2005 E320 CDI in the United States. OM648 engine. ~215k miles on the car. I have NOT had an injector flow test or injector balance test done yet. I bought the car at 168k, and have no maintenance history before that.
I do almost all my own work, but I took this to a shop because I can and I didn't want to mess with it this week.
The shop is trying to sell me on an injector refurbishment at ~$120/each. That doesn't seem terrible. I've actually been wondering if I have a leaking injector, as the best mileage I've been able to get is 30-32 mpg at 80 mph. The dash display tells me numbers above 40 mpg on trips like that... I find it difficult to believe that the dash display could be *THAT* wrong and the car still functioning correctly.
Once the immediate problem of removing the injector and cleaning the carbon deposit has been overcome, is there a reason not to reinstall with new seals? Will refurbishing the injectors get my mileage back?
What more do I need to know about the shop that does the refurbishing?
Newbie
Joined: Jan 2019
Posts: 7
Likes: 0
From: Mississippi
05 E320 CDI
Same as you
I have an 05 CDI as well with 225k! Bought with 203k. I had the BD too and DIYd the flow test and repair all new seals! It was easy. My results were #1 was a bit higher. However my mpg was off low consistent 4%. I would average 34 mpg mix city hwg but get 43 long trips with indicator saying 46. I just installed 225/60r16 tires to compensate for the calc difference! I also just replaced my fuel pump with a Tampa Bay diesel rebuild sprinter pump. Sprinter fuel system parts are identical but much cheaper FYI. Refurbishment includes what here? Also make sure your oil is spec because I believe that matters here! I recently have had inconsistent mileage on trip at times up to 50 mpg short trip but haven’t had a chance for a long trip with the new tires! Good luck!!
Super Member
Joined: Apr 2007
Posts: 633
Likes: 48
From: USA
2006 E320 CDI
I found my first diesel headache on Monday:
Black death on #6.
The car is a 2005 E320 CDI in the United States. OM648 engine. ~215k miles on the car. I have NOT had an injector flow test or injector balance test done yet. I bought the car at 168k, and have no maintenance history before that.
I do almost all my own work, but I took this to a shop because I can and I didn't want to mess with it this week.
The shop is trying to sell me on an injector refurbishment at ~$120/each. That doesn't seem terrible. I've actually been wondering if I have a leaking injector, as the best mileage I've been able to get is 30-32 mpg at 80 mph. The dash display tells me numbers above 40 mpg on trips like that... I find it difficult to believe that the dash display could be *THAT* wrong and the car still functioning correctly.
Once the immediate problem of removing the injector and cleaning the carbon deposit has been overcome, is there a reason not to reinstall with new seals? Will refurbishing the injectors get my mileage back?
What more do I need to know about the shop that does the refurbishing?
Black death on #6.
The car is a 2005 E320 CDI in the United States. OM648 engine. ~215k miles on the car. I have NOT had an injector flow test or injector balance test done yet. I bought the car at 168k, and have no maintenance history before that.
I do almost all my own work, but I took this to a shop because I can and I didn't want to mess with it this week.
The shop is trying to sell me on an injector refurbishment at ~$120/each. That doesn't seem terrible. I've actually been wondering if I have a leaking injector, as the best mileage I've been able to get is 30-32 mpg at 80 mph. The dash display tells me numbers above 40 mpg on trips like that... I find it difficult to believe that the dash display could be *THAT* wrong and the car still functioning correctly.
Once the immediate problem of removing the injector and cleaning the carbon deposit has been overcome, is there a reason not to reinstall with new seals? Will refurbishing the injectors get my mileage back?
What more do I need to know about the shop that does the refurbishing?
This throttle body cleaner does an excellent job at dissolving that tar, this tool is needed to pull the injectors with a warm engine. That tar will be filling the insides of the well.
You need a flare wrench too, I think it was 14mm. I pulled all the injectors and put new nozzle nuts on them and copper seals, new retension bolts of course. I sprayed inside the nozzles after disassembly with the red straw to clean them obtaining the star spray pattern. There are some very small parts inside the injector, be very cautious, you need a benchtop vise clamping an adjustable wrench which holds the injector for disassembly. You need 6” wooden stick cotton swabs too. Those nuts are on very tight, use a deep well and an impact wrench. I had a wrench slip on two nut faces before I used the impact method, I tried to fix the face but decided just to get new nuts. You need a electronic torque wrench for the hold down bolts put a paint dot on the head of the bolt so you don’t exceed torque using 180 degrees max. Torque spec: 7nM, then 90° + 90°, yields 19 nM. I did not ream or reface the seat at the bottom of the well, it was not damaged, just tarred up. I have a camera to go down the well and examine it. I examined the piston bores and tops to check for left over debris, examined valve heads too. Harbor freight has a blow gun with two needles, you should have that too (stock # 64149). With the injectors out I manually rotated the engine a few times to move the pistons. I could smell the ooze as I walked by the front of the car. Only #2 was leaking at first but in a couple of weeks while researching parts/tools #3 started leaking too, so its smart to pull all the injectors.
Last edited by ot1; May 29, 2022 at 11:58 PM.
Senior Member
Joined: Aug 2014
Posts: 337
Likes: 20
From: Charlotte, NC
2005 E320 CDI, 2015 GLA 250
Good description.
I purchased an injector seat reamer to clean up any blow by damage to the head but it cleaned up almost immediately. I too, did one and then shortly later found another so in the end, I pulled all six injectors. I was surprised that the problem is the seals and the dealer charged something like $0.50 for them. The hold down bolts weren’t near as cheap and the “special” grease was very expensive for a toothpaste tube (maybe ~$25).
But that was some time ago and everything is still clean.
Peter
PS. The factory manual describes how to repair a head when you break off an injector. Nasty looking job. Warming up the engine softens the tar and I wouldn’t even try to pry them out with a cold engine.
I purchased an injector seat reamer to clean up any blow by damage to the head but it cleaned up almost immediately. I too, did one and then shortly later found another so in the end, I pulled all six injectors. I was surprised that the problem is the seals and the dealer charged something like $0.50 for them. The hold down bolts weren’t near as cheap and the “special” grease was very expensive for a toothpaste tube (maybe ~$25).
But that was some time ago and everything is still clean.
Peter
PS. The factory manual describes how to repair a head when you break off an injector. Nasty looking job. Warming up the engine softens the tar and I wouldn’t even try to pry them out with a cold engine.
